HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Mayor Tommy Battle used today's State of the City address to provide a sneak peak at what Huntsville might look five or 10 years from now.

A video accompanying Battle's speech asked the crowd to imagine a future where 428-acre John Hunt Park becomes a southern version of New York's Central Park, with an outdoor concert venue, exercise trails and a new stadium for football, soccer and lacrosse.

The "what if" segment also touted the possibility of building a more modern City Hall and allowing the Sci-Quest Hands-on Science Center to take over part of the existing municipal complex.

Sci-Quest is currently housed at Calhoun Community College's Wynn Drive campus.

Battle said those things and more -- including an expanded Big Spring International Park, downtown baseball stadium and year-round farmers market -- could grow out of a new master plan for development.

The city is getting ready to launch a nationwide search for an urban planner who will help plot Huntsville's future.

Earlier in his sold-out speech at the Von Braun Center's North Hall, Battle said the city needs to make sure local high school graduates are prepared for the jobs of the future.

While an estimated 75 percent of "emerging" careers will require at least some college, he said, only 38 percent of Madison County adults currently have a college degree.

"That shows we have work to do," Battle said.

He credited new Huntsville Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski with helping turn around the system's finances and accountability during his first four months on the job.

"We have the leadership in place," Battle said, "to make this the No. 1 education community in the United States."